Anyone know how to untangle matted cat fur?

I have a short hair cat that is 16 years old. She looks really good for her age, but recently the hair on her butt has gotten matted. I tried giving her a bath and we brush her everyday. Is there anything else I can do to untangle the matted hair other than shaving?

i really doubt it. long haired cats are just so prone to mats. my friends cat gets so matted every summer that they just shave him and give him a lion cut. they leave the hair on his paws, head, and tail and shave everything else. he looks stupid, but i'm sure he enjoys it. must be much cooler with all that hair gone.

BUT, there are two ways to get them out. 1. is to buy a special tool, a dematting comb, where each blade is sharp like a knife and as it combs through it cuts a little. The second, and this requires a very laid back pet, is to use scissors and rather than cutting the mat off, slide the scissors up perpendicular to the skin and cut that way- so you are cutting the direction the hair grows instead of across the hair. You lose less hair with this method than cutting them out, you just have to snip, snip, snip, comb, comb, comb, snip, comb, snip, etc till it's all out.

Ha ha ha ha...ummm yeah shaving is not an option and here is why: This cat can get MEAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! When I pick this cat up at the vet they have a towel over her cage with a sign on it that says WARNING BITES! She hisses and snorts at the first sign of a stranger. This is the kind of cat that can be purring as you hold it and than all of a sudden she will sink her teeth into your flesh. So I very much doubt she will go for a clippers, but I might try a dematting comb and just go slow with it and do a little at a time. Thanks for the help!